RICHMOND MAN SENTENCED TO 7 YEARS FOR DISTRIBUTION AND POSSESSION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

RICHMOND (November 1, 2017) - Rory Joseph Kennedy, 26, of the City of Richmond, was sentenced yesterday to 7 years of active imprisonment, with an additional 73 years suspended, after pleading guilty to two counts of distribution of child pornography and eight counts of possession of child pornography. Upon his release, Kennedy will be placed on supervised release indefinitely and will be required to register as a sex offender in any jurisdiction in which he lives or works. Attorney General Mark R. Herring, whose team successfully prosecuted the case, announced the result after Kennedy was sentenced by Richmond City Circuit Court Judge Phillip L. Hairston.

"Nothing is more important than the safety and security of our children, and my team and I will continue to be relentless in fighting the scourge of child pornography and putting criminals behind bars," said Attorney General Mark Herring. "This is another strong sentence that takes a dangerous predator out of the community, and I'm so proud of the cooperation between my team of prosecutors and investigators and our law enforcement partners that helps keep Virginia children safe."

Evidence presented in court showed that Kennedy was identified by law enforcement after sharing files of child pornography with undercover investigators from the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force over a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. Internet service records associated with the downloads led investigators to Kennedy's West Grace Street apartment, where they executed a search warrant in April of last year. During the search, law enforcement seized Kennedy's laptop and external hard drives. A forensic examination was performed on these devices and investigators discovered over one thousand images and videos of child pornography, as well as file-sharing software, saved in active, accessible space. In a consensual interview with law enforcement, Kennedy admitted to using file-sharing programs to obtain child pornography and to knowing that the program he used would share his files with other users.

A majority of the child pornography images recovered depict children as young as infants being sexually abused, some of which have been identified by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children as abuse victims in prior law enforcement investigations. Many images featured BDSM and bestiality themes.

This case was investigated by the Richmond City Police Department and the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant Attorney General Stacey Rohrs of the Virginia Attorney General's Office prosecuted the case on behalf of the Commonwealth, with assistance from the Richmond City Commonwealth's Attorney's Office.